Iain Abernethy - Important Messages from Iainhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/taxonomy/term/1
This section is where Iain will post important messages relating to this message board.
enA reminder of the non-negotiable ruleshttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/reminder-non-negotiable-rules
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><div>
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Hi All,</p>
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Below is a reminder of the rules. The iainabernethy.com forum has always been a very positive message board and this is due in no small part to the rules and the strict enforcement of the them by members and moderators alike. Please be sure to read, understand and post in accordance with them.</p>
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Everyone has a part to play in ensure that this forum is as we all like it to be, so please don't hesitate to let me know if any posters are thought to be in breach of these rules.</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p>
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By joining and posting, you warrant that you will not post any messages that are obscene, vulgar, sexually-orientated, hateful, threatening, or that will in anyway violate any laws. You also agree to abide by the message board rules listed below, and any future amendments to these rules.</p>
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<strong>THE RULES:</strong> The rules governing this message board are very straight forward and should be easy to abide by. Our goal is to promote a positive environment for the exchange of ideas and the sharing of information. <u><em><strong>NOTE: This is not a message board for those who get their kicks from attacking martial arts and individuals from behind the safety of pseudonym. Serious martial artists will be made very welcome here. “Keyboard Combatants” are not at all welcome and are advised to go elsewhere. </strong></em></u>Forums are assigned "moderators" who will restrict inappropriate content and have the power to ban violators of these rules without notice or warning.</div>
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1. Your Name: It is preferred that members use either their real name or an appropriate nickname. This will help ensure the membership is made up of mature, genuine and competent martial artists. So let’s have no silly comic book style aliases such as “The Skull Crusher” or “Ninja Death Strike”! Failure to comply with this rule will result in termination of membership.</div>
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2. Password: A password is required to sign into the message board and to play an active part. Following membership approval by the administrators, you can log on using this password. You will be able to change your password by visiting your profile. All members must never allow anyone else to use their password.</div>
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3. Any spiteful, racist, sexist or slanderous comments or messages about other people, members, martial arts, or anything else will NOT BE TOLERATED! ANYONE WHO BREAKS THIS RULE WILL HAVE THEIR MESSAGES DELETED, ACCESS REMOVED, AND WILL BE BANNED WITHOUT WARNING.</div>
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4. Disagreement is an important and inevitable part of all healthy discussions. However, all members are expected to disagree in the courteous way associated with mature, secure and capable martial artists. If you feel the need to resort to insults, you probably don’t have a valid counter-argument and make it obvious to all that you don’t fully understand what you’re talking about! In the event of an impasse, agreeing to disagree is to be the way forward.</div>
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5. Members whose posts are deemed to be deliberately disruptive (i.e. making inflammatory posts whilst refusing to engage in actual discussion) or detrimental to the quality of the board in other ways (i.e. persistently making rambling off-topic posts) will have their membership revoked.</div>
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6. Keep your messages on-topic. For example, in the self-protection forum, don’t post messages about stretching exercises. Also, do not derail threads by introducing unrelated side issues. Persistent offenders will have thier membership revoked.</div>
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7. Do not post the same message into multiple forums. Even if the topic covered may also be appropriate for other forums, please choose the forum which most closely fits the topic and post it once in that location.</div>
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8. You may only have ONE account. Those who are discovered to have multiple accounts will have their membership terminated without notice.</div>
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9. Do not SPAM these forums! We have provided one forum - "What’s On?" – were you can post information on events, seminars and other such announcements that may be of interest to other members. Those found to be posting such material in other forums, or abusing this facility for their own ends may have their membership terminated without warning.</div>
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10. Please do not use slang or shorthand in your posts e.g. none of this “L8R” (Later) nonsense. Posts should be kept as clear as possible in order to facilitate good quality communication.</div>
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11. All members have a duty to ensure that this message board is a positive, beneficial and fun place to be. Therefore members must report all inappropriate posts and all rule breaches to the moderators. If you discover an inappropriate post, please do not reply but instead immediately report it (all reports will be treated in strict confidence).</div>
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12. Please keep your private chatter for the private message function. Don’t post it! I know it happens in other forums, but it is not acceptable here. Other members are unlikely to be interested in your non-topic related discussion and it means members and visitors have to sift through it all in order to get to the heart of what is being discussed. All such posts must be reported, they will be deleted, and persistent offenders will have their membership revoked.</div>
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13. Moderators and Administrators have the ability to restrict inappropriate content and have the power to ban any member who breaks these rules, without notice or warning. The administrators or moderators of Iain Abernethy.com also have the right to remove, edit, move or close any thread for any reason.</div>
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14. THE GOLDEN RULE: Don’t take yourself or anyone else too seriously and be sure to enjoy yourself</div>
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</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 15 Sep 2010 18:20:32 +0000Iain Abernethy262 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/reminder-non-negotiable-rules#commentsForum Twitter Feedhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/forum-twitter-feed
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Hi All,</p>
<p>To help better distribute all the cool stuff people add here, I have revamped the twitter feed from this website (<a href="https://twitter.com/iainaberdotcom" target="_blank">@iainaberdotcom</a>). This is sperate from my own feed (<a href="https://twitter.com/iainabernethy" target="_blank">@iainabernethy</a>) and it essentially will pick up all new forum threads. You can see it bellow.</p>
<p>If you are regular forum user and contributor, it would be a good idea to follow @iainaberdotcom on Twitter (be sure to switch on mobile notifications too) so you are kept in the loop.</p>
<p>It can take a little while to the tweets to appear (because I need to do it manually), btu anythitgn that appears in the rss feed will be tweeted out: <a href="https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/rss_latest.xml">https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/rss_latest.xml</a></p>
<p>I hope you find it useful.</p>
<p>All the best,</p>
<p>Iain</p>
<p><a class="twitter-timeline" href="https://twitter.com/iainaberdotcom">Tweets by @iainaberdotcom</a></p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Fri, 23 Mar 2018 13:27:29 +0000Iain Abernethy3519 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/forum-twitter-feed#commentsEmbedding Videoshttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/embedding-videos
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Only those with moderator privileges can embed videos. If you post the link to the video, I will embed it when I next visit.</p>
<p>All the best,</p>
<p>Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Mon, 08 Jan 2018 11:31:37 +0000Iain Abernethy3402 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/embedding-videos#commentsSomething for the regulars!https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/something-regulars
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Hi All,</p>
<p>All forum regular contributors and readers will want to read this:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/news/websites-secret-twitter-feed" rel="nofollow">http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/news/websites-secret-twitter-feed</a></p>
<p>I hope you find it useful!</p>
<p>All the best,</p>
<p>Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 28 Aug 2013 13:35:33 +0000Iain Abernethy1593 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/something-regulars#commentsYodan thread deletedhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/yodan-thread-deleted
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
HI All,</p>
<p>
I’ve just deleted a thread discussing an application to Heian Yodan. While the vast majority of what was in the tread was totally fine; there were a few places where the general tone was not in-keeping with the nature of the forum. There was some great information in the thread which I was keen not to lose, but there were so many posts (all referencing one another) that to try to edit it back to what it should be, and still have a meaningful coherent thread, was impossible. I therefore took the nuclear option of deleting the whole thread. Sorry folks.</p>
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This never happens often, and I’m always loathed to do it, but I do need to ensure the reputation of this forum for good natured, thoughtful and lively debate remains intact.</p>
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All the best,</p>
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Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Sun, 18 Aug 2013 08:18:04 +0000Iain Abernethy1571 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/yodan-thread-deleted#commentsCAPTCHA Changeshttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/captcha-changes
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi Folks,</p>
<p>
I know the CAPTCHA thing has been problematic for some users. I’ve therefore made some changes! When you now start a new thread, you will be asked to answer a basic maths question (all very simple!) as opposed to identifying distorted images. There is now no form of test required to reply to posts.</p>
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As previously, all new members will still need to identify distorted images and undergo a personal check by me before they can join. This should hopefully weed out all the automated applications while making life as simple as possible for legitimate members who have already identified themselves as human(ish) :-)</p>
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All the best,</p>
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Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Sun, 04 Aug 2013 09:55:22 +0000Iain Abernethy1560 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/captcha-changes#commentsA reminder of how we do things herehttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/reminder-how-we-do-things-here
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
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Here is a link to the site rules everyone agreed to in order to become a member: <a href="http://iainabernethy.co.uk/site-rules" rel="nofollow">http://iainabernethy.co.uk/site-rules</a></p>
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In light of some recent posts that were not in keeping with the tone of the board (all now deleted) I would like to post this general reminder and draw particular attention to some key aspects of how we do things here.</p>
<p>
Among the key aims of this forum are to share information so that we can better understand the views we currently hold through exploration and discussion, to be exposed to alternative viewpoints so we may personally decide if they have something to offer us, and to provide a quality resource for martial artists like us who do not accept appeals to authority or tradition as being valid justifications for any viewpoint or practise. We therefore want disagreement and information focused discussions; and we have simple rules to ensure that is done in a productive way.</p>
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As I said, we want disagreement here as it’s the best way to explore all aspects of a topic. Those who post here should expect to be disagreed with and know that we welcome dissent and disagreement. It would be totally pointless if we only permitted or endorsed one particular viewpoint. It is therefore inappropriate to take umbrage if someone holds at viewpoint different to your own.</p>
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All of that said, disagreement and the resulting discussions needs to be done in a mature and productive way. It’s it not acceptable to write in a “holier than thou”, sarcastic or demeaning fashion. All discussions also need to focus 100% on the dissection of the issue at hand. People should state their case for their viewpoint, but once we get into the realm of personal attack and taking things personally it instantly becomes entirely pointless and, I’d like to think, something we’d all rather avoid.</p>
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In this forum’s long history (in this incarnation and the previous one) we have only ever had to ban a handful of people. In this case I believe that no single person is at fault; with all parties making some contribution to the ensuing results. All I have done is therefore tidied up the thread in question and, with my site moderator hat on, I have directed those directly involved to this post. No one has done anything that would warrant being banned from this forum.</p>
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We have simple rules here and I’ve posted the ones below that I think apply to the recent situation.</p>
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I will now return you to our regular service :-)</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p>
<p>
<blockquote class="quote-msg quote-nest-1 odd"><div class="quote-author"><em class="placeholder">Site Rules</em> wrote:</div> 4. Disagreement is an important and inevitable part of all healthy discussions. However, all members are expected to disagree in the courteous way associated with mature, secure and capable martial artists. If you feel the need to resort to insults, you probably don’t have a valid counter-argument and make it obvious to all that you don’t fully understand what you’re talking about! In the event of an impasse, agreeing to disagree is to be the way forward.</p>
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13. The whole point of the forum is to share information. Therefore please don’t make any “information free” posts! Be sure that your posts add something to the discussion and you are not “talking for the sake of talking”. All posts should be questions aimed at clarifying the views expressed in another post; a statement of your own views including an explanation of why you hold those views and believe them to be true; or statement of an alternative position complete with an explanation of your view and why you hold another view to be invalid or not as valid. “I think kata is a good way to train because ….” is great. “I think kata is a good way to train” end of statement is poor and such posts will be deleted. This is not a “shout from your soap box” kind of forum. All posts need to add something to the discussion.</p>
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15. THE GOLDEN RULE: Don’t take yourself or anyone else too seriously and be sure to enjoy yourself!</blockquote></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 26 Jun 2013 15:21:16 +0000Iain Abernethy1509 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukSpam lookalikes need not apply!https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/spam-lookalikes-need-not-apply
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
One of the problems of the success of this forum (I like good problems :-) is that the spam bots are desperate to get in here! As you know, all memberships are approved by me. It would help greatly in the sometimes time-consuming “spam / not spam” process if all potential members would avoid looking like spam. I have a zero-tolerance “delete unapproved profile, ask questions later” approach to this task :-)</p>
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If your user name looks like a random combination of numbers and letters – which it shouldn’t: see rule 1 of the forum – then it won’t get approved. Failing to put in any details is also likely to get a profile deleted. If you look like spam, I’m assuming you are.</p>
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If you applied for membership before the date of this post, and have not had it approved, then you know what has most likely happened.</p>
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Thanks for understanding why I need to do this and for ensuring this forum remains safe from the worst the internet has to offer.</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:49:42 +0000Iain Abernethy1207 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/spam-lookalikes-need-not-apply#commentsWhere has Iain been this week!? :-)https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/where-has-iain-been-week
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
I was in Germany last week for three days, I’ve been pretty ill through the week, and I set off for the USA at 3am tomorrow. All of this has meant I’m way behind on this forum and other things too. I know there are a lot of posts here that need videos embedded etc. Also plenty of good threads I want to play my part in. However, time and energy have been against me this week so please bear with me. I’ll be back next week and with your understanding it won’t take too long to get back on top of things. As I say please bear with me. I’ll be back! :-)</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:49:07 +0000Iain Abernethy1206 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/where-has-iain-been-week#commentsIMPORTANT: Please remember to quote correctlyhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/important-please-remember-quote-correctly
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
Please be sure to use the quote function. It saves me having to tidy up your posts in order to keep them as readable as possible.</p>
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To quote someone you can either use the quote button on their post, and then delete the irrelevant bits … or you can type the code in by hand.</p>
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I have to do this wrong to prevent it making the code into an actual quote, but essentially you start the quote with a square bracket “[“, the word “quote”, an “=” sign, the name of the person being quoted and then a closing square bracket “]”</p>
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At the end of the quoted text you put the following: [/quote]</p>
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I’ve put a space after the 1st square bracket to stop it working, but the code should be as follows (without the space):</p>
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<strong>[ quote=name of person being quoted]The text you want to quote[/quote]</strong></p>
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When you do that the text will appear as below when the post is saved:</p>
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<blockquote class="quote-msg quote-nest-1 odd"><div class="quote-author"><em class="placeholder">Iain Abernethy</em> wrote:</div>A bit of example quoted text</blockquote></p>
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I hope that helps?</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 14:18:23 +0000Iain Abernethy657 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/important-please-remember-quote-correctly#commentsIMPORTANT: Email message / "Page not found"https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/important-email-message-page-not-found
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
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The following message was sent to all members today. If you’ve followed the link here from the email and the website says “Page Not Found” it’s because you have not logged in. If you log in, you’ll be able to read the message.</p>
<p>
All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p>
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<blockquote class="quote-msg quote-nest-1 odd"><div class="quote-author"><em class="placeholder">Message sent to all members</em> wrote:</div>This is just a quick message to all website members. Quite a few website members have been emailing us to say they are not getting the newsletters. When we’ve looked into this it seem that some assumed that when they joined the site they would automatically get the newsletters. That’s not the case. The newsletters need to be signed up for separately via this link:</p>
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<a href="http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/join-newsletter-and-get-two-free-e-books" rel="nofollow">http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/join-newsletter-and-get-two-free-e-books</a></p>
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If you enter your details on that page and then click on the confirmation link that will be emailed to you, you’ll then get all the newsletters sent through. I hope that clears up any confusion.</p>
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Also remember that if you want to be informed the instant any new videos, podcasts, etc are added to the site that the Twitter feed and Facebook page may also be of interest:</p>
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<a href="http://twitter.com/iainabernethy" rel="nofollow">http://twitter.com//iainabernethy</a></p>
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/iainabernethy" rel="nofollow">http://www.facebook.com/iainabernethy</a></p>
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Thanks once again for joining this website!</p>
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All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</blockquote></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Tue, 31 May 2011 15:43:52 +0000Iain Abernethy649 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/important-email-message-page-not-found#commentsIf your post has been deleted today, then stop it!https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/if-your-post-has-been-deleted-today-then-stop-it
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
For those who need reminding, please remember that all condescending and argumentative posts will be deleted. Persistent offenders will have their membership revoked.</p>
<p>
Debate is good, but we need the right tone to be maintained at all times. This morning I have deleted a number of posts due to an incorrect tone being exhibited. While I always aim to privately message people to explain why posts have been deleted, that is not possible today as I’ve a number of appointments to keep and time is short.</p>
<p>
Also, some of those who were deleted today have been asked about this before. Please remember that guidance on tone does not have a time limit! The right tone and observance of the rules is required by all members at all times. Those who insist on being argumentative and condescending to others in their posts need to remember that if you keep it up I have no option but to ban you in order to keep the good reputation this board has developed over the years and to maintain the kinds of conversations we all enjoy.</p>
<p>
All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 18 May 2011 08:20:52 +0000Iain Abernethy627 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/if-your-post-has-been-deleted-today-then-stop-it#commentsPlease quote when replying in longer threadshttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/please-quote-when-replying-longer-threads
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
Just a little reminder that if replying to someone it really helps if you quote the bit you are replying to. I’ve just spent a little time tidying up some threads that would be very difficult to follow for any visitors due to a lack of quoting.</p>
<p>
As well as exchanging information with each other, it needs to be remembered that the vast majority of people who read what we post here are non-posters. To keep the information “clean” it helps massively if you quote what you are replying to.</p>
<p>
All it takes is a few long posts from the same people in a single thread and it’s very difficult to tell what the reply is to and all clarity is lost.</p>
<p>
Quoting is very easy and instructions are here: <a href="http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/how-quote">http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/how-quote</a></p>
<p>
Just cut and paste the relevant bits and add the “quote code”</p>
<p>
Thanks for your assistance and understanding <img alt="smiley" height="20" src="http://iainabernethy.co.uk/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.gif" title="smiley" width="20" /></p>
<p>
All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:55:44 +0000Iain Abernethy554 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/please-quote-when-replying-longer-threads#commentsPLEASE READ THIS: A note on productive posting for our newer people.https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/please-read-note-productive-posting-our-newer-people
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
The great news is that the forum has a record number of members and the rate of posts has been pretty high in recent weeks! The not so good news is that I’m finding I have to do a lot of deleting and reminding of forum rules.</p>
<p>
The site rules are here: <a href="http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/site-rules">http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/site-rules</a></p>
<p>
All posters should be 100% familiar with them (they are pretty simple) and ensure all posts comply with them. They are non-negotiable and this is how we do things here.</p>
<p>
The second thing is that the whole point of the forum is to share information. <u>I’d therefore appreciate it if the newer members could reign in “information free” posts.</u></p>
<p>
You can use the private message function for private chatter (see the rules). Also be sure that your posts add something to the discussion and you are not “talking for the sake of talking”.</p>
<p>
<span style="color: #f00"><strong>1 – Is your post a question aimed at clarifying the views expressed in another post?</strong></span></p>
<p>
These are great as they ensure discussions get opened up and the unclear is made clear. This is also a great way for the “less experienced” to really help ensure good quality information is shared. Some people are reluctant to post their own views, but everyone can ask questions and it really helps.</p>
<p>
<span style="color: #f00"><strong>2 – Is your post a statement of your own views COMPLETE an explanation of why you hold those views and believe them to be true?</strong></span></p>
<p>
We love these! Statements of viewpoint without an explanation of that viewpoint are not good though as they are effectively nothing more than a personal view and are information free. “I think kata is a good way to train BECAUSE ….” is great. “I think kata is a good way to train” end of statement is poor and such posts will be deleted.</p>
<p>
<span style="color: #f00"><strong>3 – Is your post a statement of an alternative position COMPLETE with an explanation of your view and why you hold another view to be invalid or not as valid?</strong></span></p>
<p>
As above. Saying “I disagree full stop” is nothing more than personal opinion and hence irrelevant to all but you. “I disagree BECAUSE …” is great because it shares information and is what the forum is all about.</p>
<p>
<span style="color: #f00"><strong>4 – Have you read the full thread before posting? Or are you leaping in midstream without an understating of where the tread has already gone?</strong></span></p>
<p>
There’s been a lot of “leaping in” recently and it leads to people having to say the same things again and “looped threads”. I have no option but to delete such posts in order to keep the information posted here clear, accessible and usable to the sites thousands of visitors.</p>
<p>
<strong><span style="color: #f00">5 – If you are going to quote someone (which helps make it very clear what is being said in response to what) please do it as explained here:</span> <a href="http://iainabernethy.co.uk/content/how-quote">http://iainabernethy.co.uk/content/how-quote</a></strong><p></p></p>
<p>
It’s really easy to do, makes your posts much clearer, and saves me having to tidy up posts that quoted in a “unofficial way”.<p></p></p>
<p>
<span style="color: #f00"><strong>6 – Remember that this site automatically line spaces paragraphs.</strong></span></p>
<p>
Hitting return twice will result in a double space and I need to edit those out to stop the forum looking a mess. If you are cutting and pasting your responses from a word document etc, be sure to take this in to account and edit your own posts if they typeset incorrectly. Thanks!<p></p></p>
<p>
I want as many people to contribute as possible … the key word though being “<em>contribute</em>”. This is not a “shout from your soap box” kind of forum. All posts need to add something to the discussion and it would help me a lot if people could think about the above points in order to ensure good quality discussions and avoid me having to “clean up”. Thanks!</p>
<p>
All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Mon, 24 Jan 2011 15:42:11 +0000Iain Abernethy453 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukThe new websites first banning! (Misuse of private message function)https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/new-websites-first-banning-misuse-private-message-function
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>
Hi All,</p>
<p>
Some of you may have got a private message from a user telling you they were into karate and wrestling and that they wished to make friends with you. That user had sent that message to many members and it is unclear what their motivation was?</p>
<p>
I think we can be pretty sure it was not to engage in serious martial discussion and that is why that account has been deleted and the member banned off the site (which is why you can’t reply if you have tried). Thanks to those who reported this person.</p>
<p>
To join the forum any potential user needs to enter a visual code and be approved by myself. This was therefore not an automated attempt to send “spam private messages”, but a real person using the forum inappropriately. It’s an inevitable consequence of the forum being as popular as it is that we’ll get the occasional “nutter” and “ne’er-do-well” joining us. They are easily dealt with though!</p>
<p>
I’ll keep carefully screening all applications and if any slip through the net and do something inappropriate, please let me know and I’ll deactivate their account immediately.</p>
<p>
All the best,</p>
<p>
Iain</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-forums field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Forums:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/forums/important-messages-iain">Important Messages from Iain</a></div></div></div>Fri, 21 Jan 2011 11:53:04 +0000Iain Abernethy447 at https://www.iainabernethy.co.ukhttps://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/new-websites-first-banning-misuse-private-message-function#comments